


Broken

by LittleSweetCheeks



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, Family, Friendship, Separation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-03-08 14:15:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13459989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleSweetCheeks/pseuds/LittleSweetCheeks
Summary: “I know it hurts, but I promise it will get better.”





	Broken

JJ hauled both boys out of the van and into the house. Henry had been in a funk since Will had moved out, the boy had been sullen and moody. It was starting to grate on JJ’s nerves, but she knew he just needed time to adapt to his parents splitting up. She couldn’t help being happy that at least Michael was too young to really understand that Daddy had moved out.

Taking the time to unbundle herself and her youngest son, JJ wished for a moment that it had been possible for them to have moved to New Orleans as well. Sure, she was used to the frigid weather, but it was a major pain when dealing with the kids. Setting Michael on his feet, she encouraged him to toddle off. “Go on, Mikey, go play.” Taking two steps, she nearly tripped over a pair of slushy sneakers. “Henry! What have I told you about leaving your shoes here?” She shouted up the stairs.

“Fine!” He barked back, storming down to scoop up his shoes and toss them hard onto the shelf where they belonged.

JJ sighed as her oldest son stomped back up the stairs and slammed his bedroom door. When her phone rang, she didn’t even bother looking at the screen first. “Yeah?”

There was a pause on the line before the person spoke carefully. “Well, I was calling to check on you, but I can hear that everything is not okay. So. What can I do to help, JJ?”

Relieved to hear the voice on the other end, JJ sagged and found a chair to curl into. “Hey, Dave.”

“Henry giving you a hard time still?” The older man asked. He’d been worried about the blonde and her boys since things began to fall apart with Will several months before. He’d been through enough divorces to understand the anxiety and stress that came with realizing a relationship had run its course.

“Yeah. He’s just angry all of the time now.” She sighed again. “I try to remind myself that some of it is normal ten-year-old boy and more of it is normal processing of what’s been going on.”

“But it still hurts.”

She sniffed. “What should I do?”

He could hear the waver in her voice and wondered if she’d allowed herself to take the time to cry over it all. “Are you in for the day?”

“Yeah, it’s too bad out to go out unless we have to. I’m just going to sit here and play with Michael.”

“Okay. What would you think to me joining you?”

“I don’t know.” She looked around the messy living room.

Almost as if he was reading her mind, he added. “Don’t worry about how the house looks. I’ll be by later. Okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” She hung up and watched Michael throwing blocks and giggling.

==

Dave had arrived with several bags of things he took straight into the kitchen and put away before returning to the living room and settling on the floor. “Go upstairs, JJ, Mikey and I have things under control here.”

“But…”

“Shoo. Relax for a bit, take a relaxing bath or something.” He watched her head up the stairs before turning to his young charge. “I’m gonna need your help looking after your Momma, Kiddo.” He received a partly-gummy grin in response.

Hearing the low rumbling of a man downstairs talking softly, eventually Henry emerged from his room and slunk down the stairs to see his Uncle Dave reclined on the floor playing with his little brother, his mother was nowhere in sight. “What are you doing here?” He knew if his mother heard his tone that he’d ben in big trouble, but it seemed she wasn’t around.

Rossi’s brows rose at the tone the boy used, but let it go. This time. Instead he pushed up to a sitting position. “I just came by to hang out with you guys so your mom could have a little down time. I thought I’d stick around a while and make dinner later.”

“Where’d she go?” He was used to his mom leaving for days at a time, but usually the whole team she worked with went too.

“Just upstairs.” Dave gestured to the couch. “Come keep us company.” He watched Henry finally give in and sit. “How are you doing with all this?”

“Why’s my mom need down time?”

“Your dad leaving has been rough on all of you, your mom included. She’s been busy taking care of the two of you and hasn’t really had time to deal with it herself.”

Henry thought about that. He knew Uncle Dave had been the one to throw his parents’ surprise wedding and had even looked after him while they took a long weekend away. The old Italian had always been one of his mom’s closest friends, the man always seemed to know the right answers to everything. “I thought they loved each other.”

He was surprised by how easily Henry began to open up a crack. “They do.”

“They why did my dad leave?”

“Sometimes love isn’t enough.” Dave’s mind skimmed over his own relationships with his first two wives, they’d loved each other but in the end, love couldn’t overcome the other issues that had cropped up along the way. Distance and tragedy had just been too big of obstacles. Love hadn’t been the problem in Aaron’s marriage either. Even now, he would be the first to say that Haley had loved her ex-husband even in her final breath and even now, Dave believed that his best friend’s biggest stumbling block to moving on was that his love for his deceased high school sweetheart ran just as strong and deep as it had some thirty years before.

The man had even dreamed about her, having conversations with her, even four years after her death.

Dave glanced up at the pre-teen. “The job we do… It’s the kind of job that you don’t choose, it chooses you. And your mom is so very passionate about doing it. I’m sure it was one of the things that attracted your dad to her. And your dad understands the job better than most outsiders because he has that same passion for his job too. But…” He tried to think of a good way to phrase it. Sure, Henry had been there to witness Aaron being SWATed, but it was an instinct to try and protect the children from the realities of their jobs. “Our job changes people. Sometimes it’s hard to let people in because we don’t want it to change them too.”

Henry chewed his lip. “I wish my dad was still here.”

“I know. Once everything settles down, I’m sure your parents will work out an arrangement so you can see him.”

The boy glanced up the stairs in thought and then back to the man on the floor. “Mom’s been up there a while, should we check on her?”

He could see worry in his face. Dave would have just let JJ hide out until she was ready to come out, but if it made Henry feel better… “I can go. Can you stay here with Michael?”

“Yeah.” He crawled on the floor to his brother.

==

Dave crept down the hall to the closed door at the end. Tapping on the wood, he softly called out. “JJ?” When he didn’t get a response, he tried again. “Jennifer? Henry just wanted me to check on you.” Carefully, he eased the door open and found her curled up, asleep in the bed, a pillow to her chest and dried tear tracks on her cheeks.

Giving in to his impulse, Dave crossed the room and sat on the bed in front of her, gently brushing a few strands of hair off her face. “Oh, Bella.” He sighed. “I know it hurts, but I promise it will get better.” He stayed with her a minute before standing to walk out. Turning at the door, he added. “Just remember, you have a whole family who loves you.” Pulling the door closed again, he headed down to start fixing dinner with the boys.

==

JJ rolled onto her back and stretched. In the six weeks since Will had packed up and moved out, she hadn’t had time to stop and deal with the separation on an emotional level. The break, compliments of Dave, had been a big help. She’d planned on soaking in the bath, but by the time she’d made it to her room, tears were already forming in her eyes, so she rerouted to curl on her bed and cry herself to sleep.

She thought she remembered, at some point, Dave coming in and sitting by her, but as she looked around the room, the door was still shut, so she figured it had been a dream. Crawling out of bed, she decided on a steamy shower before redressing in sweats and a robe before finding her boys.

Henry wasn’t in his room, which had to be a first, so she followed the soft sounds of chatter down to the kitchen where she found Michael sitting in a highchair playing with something while Henry was helping Dave assemble what looked like lasagna.

“Hey.” Her voice made all three look up. Henry had a smile in his face for the first time. “What’s going on in here?”

“Uncle Dave’s teaching me to make lasagna. We even made the noodles.” He held one up proudly. “It’s lots of fun.”

“It sounds fun.” She watched them work for a minute or two from the doorway before finally entering, pressing a kiss to the top of Mikey’s head, figuring out that what he was playing with was a ball of pasta dough. She rounded the island and pressed a kiss to the back of Henry’s head next. He was growing up, but he was still her baby. She could feel Dave’s eyes on her but when she looked up, he was focused on layering cheese and sauce into the dish. Closing the distance in two steps, she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

Dave turned to her and gave her a soft smile. “How are you doing?” He whispered.

“It hurts.” She admitted, wrapping one arm around his back in a half hug. “But having you here helps. Thanks for this.”

“Anytime, Bella. Anytime.”


End file.
